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These kohlrabi fritters with avocado cream sauce highlight these purple vegetables, and they’re vegetarian and gluten-free.
Looking for kohlrabi recipes? Neither Alex nor I had ever heard of kohlrabi when we first started shopping at our local farmer’s market. A kind farmer saw me looking intently at the green and purple vegetables, and he slipped a bulb to for free, “just to see I what I thought of it.” I’m embarrassed to admit the poor kohlrabi turned shriveled before I got the time—or courage—to attempt eating it.
So the next year, we started to ask around at the farmer’s market: “What can you do with kohlrabi?” The first answer we heard was to slice the kohlrabi bulb and eat it raw on a salad. We promptly tried it and it turns out, it’s pretty delicious. The crisp slices have a refreshing taste similar to a broccoli stem.
The next time we picked up some kohlrabi, we thought we’d go for something more adventurous. Alex suggested the idea of a fritter, so we developed this recipe together. (After our experience making traditional latkes, we felt ready to up our fritter game.) I admit I was a bit skeptical—fritters can be tough to pull off texture and flavor-wise—and with kohlrabi? However, Alex’s creative risk paid off: the fritters turned out crisp and savory. And even better was the accompanying avocado cream sauce—a sauce made simply of avocado, yogurt, and a bit of fresh squeezed lemon juice, it turned out to be incredibly addictive. We’d recommend using the sauce on any fritter recipe of your choosing.
How to make kohlrabi fritters
While we’re on the subject, a few tips on fritters, since they can be notoriously tricky to make at home:
- Fritters are best eaten as soon as possible after frying. If you’re making them for a crowd or entertaining, here’s a tip for keeping them warm and crispy: place a wire baking rack on top of a baking sheet, then place it in a 300F oven. As the fritters come out of the pan, place them onto the wire rack until ready to serve. Using the wire rack makes sure excess oil drips off and that both sides of the fritters stay crispy.
- Excess moisture is the enemy with fritters, so in this recipe we indicate to squeeze out the moisture of the grated veggies prior to frying.
- Frying can be a bit messy, so using a splatter screen can be helpful to avoid spitting oil.
- Grating the vegetables in a food processor with a shredding disk or blade can significantly speed up the process versus grating the vegetables by hand. (It also helps to save knuckles!)
So if you happen upon any odd-looking green or purple vegetables like the picture above at your local farmer’s market, we’d recommend giving them a try. Kohlrabi is becoming more and more popular these days, and is even popping up at mainstream grocery stores. Note that the bulbs above have been de-stemmed; you may also find them at markets with the leaves still intact.
Have you cooked with kohlrabi? What are your best kohlrabi recipes? We’d love any suggestions for preparation methods you love! See below for a few of our favorite kohlrabi recipes.
About purple vegetables
Interest in purple vegetables like kohlrabi is high. Why? Purple vegetables contain compounds called anthocyanins. Research suggests that anthocyanins may help protect cells, heal the body, decrease inflammation, and lower the risk of heart disease and cancer. Some of our favorite other purple vegetables: purple cauliflower and purple potatoes.
More kohlrabi recipes
Since we wrote the original post with this recipe, interest in the green and purple vegetables has soared! Here are a few of our other favorite kohlrabi recipes that venture outside the fritter:
- Kohlrabi Slaw Bright, crunchy and zingy! It’s one of the best ways to eat this unique vegetable.
- Beet Hummus with Kohlrabi Sticks This recipe features one of our top ways to eat kohlrabi: as relishes, similar to carrot sticks! They have a refreshing crunch and a nuanced, unique taste. Cut them into rectangles and eat them with your favorite hummus—or maybe this Greek Yogurt Ranch Dip.
- Kohlrabi Salad with Grapefruit Vinaigrette Another easy idea for kohlrabi recipes is to slice the bulb and use it to top a salad. It brings a subtle flavor and crunchy texture, here played off by the sweetness of the beet and tart grapefruit vinaigrette.
This kohlrabi recipe is…
Vegetarian, gluten-free.
Kolhrabi Fritters with Avocado Cream Sauce
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 8 fritters 1x
Description
Looking for kohlrabi recipes? These kohlrabi fritters with avocado cream sauce highlight these purple vegetables, and they’re vegetarian and gluten-free.
Ingredients
For the kohlrabi fritters
- 2 kohlrabi
- 1 carrot
- 1 egg
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne
- ½ cup grapeseed or vegetable oil (enough for ¼-inch depth in a large skillet)
For the avocado cream
- ½ avocado
- ¼ cup plain yogurt
- ½ lemon
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- Green onions (for garnish)
Instructions
- Cut the leaves off the kohlrabi and peel the bulb. Peel 1 carrot. Shred the vegetables in a food processor, or by hand using a grater. Squeeze the shredded vegetables in a tea cloth (or with your hands) to remove moisture, then add to a medium bowl with the egg, kosher salt, and cayenne. Mix to combine.
- Place the oil in a large skillet (enough for 1/4-inch depth). Heat the oil over medium high heat, then place small patties of the fritter mixture into the oil. Fry on one side until browned, then fry on the other side. Remove and place on a plate lined with a paper towel to drain excess oil.
- For the dipping sauce: Remove the avocado pit and scoop out the flesh with a spoon. In a small bowl, mix the avocado, plain yogurt, lemon juice, and kosher salt to make the avocado cream (or blend the ingredients together in a food processor).
- To serve, slice the green onions. Serve fritters with avocado cream and green onions. Note: These fritters are best eaten warm the day of making; they don’t save well. Like anything made with avocado, the avocado cream sauce will become brown after exposure to air. Make sure to cover the surface with plastic wrap when storing.
- Category: Appetizer
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
Delicious
Hello! I made the fritters yesterday for a dinner party. They were a hit! I was worried since there were no herbs in them, but the cayenne was a perfect touch. I put a little garlic powder in the avocado cream and I had some homemade creme fraiche on hand so substituted it for the sour cream. Thank you! I needed ideas for my kohlrabi. Yum!
Just made these fritters tonite. And loved it!!
The avocado cream is my new go to for all my veggie fritters. Glad I found this recipe!! I never thought of mixing these two vegetables. Thank you!!
I made this recipe once and we loved it! I only wish there was an amount of Kohlrabi (in terms of cups or weight) specified as Kohlrabis vary quite a bit in size….This would address issues like the post above…I have 2 rather small one to deal with here and an egg does’t reduce very well so I will wing if for now,,,,Sure love the recipe!!! the Avo/cream sauce is to die for!
These were really delicious, much better than I anticipated, although – like most fritters – a bit greasy. In my experience, 1 egg was not nearly enough to bind the kohlrabi-carrot mixture, 2 was perfect (but maybe my kolrabi were larger than average). Also, I felt like the yield of the avocado cream was high, and you could scale back the quantities just slightly.
Excellent! I got kohlrabi in my CSA box and had never eaten it before. This recipe looked good to try, and it was delicious! Thank you! (PS- You might want to check the spelling of kohlrabi.)
We’re so glad you liked it! And, spelling corrected — thank you :)
Yum, My first Kohlrabi fritter!
Love these fritters! So easy and tasty! Just make sure you squeeze that water out so they hold together well.
Made these fritters tonight and thought they were very good. I think this recipe would be a fantastic base to a crab cake. The avocado yogurt topping was wonderful. It will be a great addition to my kitchen arsenal!
This was amazing. I added zucchini and radishes because I had a ton and it was great! That avocado spread is so refreshing. Love it love it.
Came across this recipe to use some kohlrabi from my CSA. Made the fritters as a base for duck breast, so I added a little panko crumbs and fried them in the duck fat. Absolutely divine! My wife thought they tasted like “Spicy egg roll filling” With the cherry and wine reduction for the duck balancing the cayenne, it was phenomenal.
Loved the recipient, been wanting to try kohlrabi and I didn’t even know how to prep it. I was pleasantly surprised at how it stayed together with just one egg. Mom and I ate the whole recipe. Lemons were too expensive this week, so we had to use apple cider vinegar and we had no green onions. The natural flavors of all the ingredients were highlighted well. Thank you so much for the recipe.
Thank you for the great recipe! My family was very impressed and I will be making again!
I tried this and apparently could not get enough to of the water squeezed out. So when I fried them, they just fell into pieces. Had to eat it like rice, but the taste was good. I may try it again, but add an extra egg.
Using a tea towel really helps in making all fritters. It seems like the only way I can get out enough liquid. Good luck!
And what about kohlrabi soup? This is the best!
Growing Kohlrabi in the garden tower, first time ever to cook with it. I had to tweak the recipe…needed more volume and filler….I added grated potatoes. But you can’t fry potatoes without onion, a little grated onion added too.
I think you forgot to include the flour in the recipe…there was no way that the ONE egg was going to hold everything together. Guess what, though? I’m out of flour…but I have a lot of leftover baby cereal, multi-grain is healthy right??
Sea salt, black pepper, got to have garlic powder and I switched the cayenne pepper with Curry powder, I’m feeding kids.
I don’t have plain yogurt for the creamy avocado, so I ruined it with sour cream and too much lemon. REDO…Avocado, Helmann’s Olive Oil Mayo, and garlic powder, sea salt, yummy.
Jenni made parmesean cheese and tumeric crusted fish. Whatever we had in the freezer, a couple salmon, a couple talapia, whiting, and others.
Tastee!
I ran across this as I was wondering what to do with the kohlrabi and carrots sitting in my fridge. This was really yummy and easy with the help of a food processor! We added a few italian bread crumbs for some additional spice, but besides that, used all your ingredients (including Greek plain yogurt). As I was putting the avodaco cream and green onions on top I was kind of questioning how it would all taste together, but we were pleasantly surprised by how well everything meshed!
Can you substitute non-fat greek yogurt for the plain yogurt?
This should be fine!
You know that Kohlrabi are very easy to grow. You can even grow them in a pot. They prefer cool weather and are a great early or late (fall) vegetable. I made this recipe last night, substituting cream cheese for the yoghurt and adding some freshly chopped green onion, tarragon, savory and parsley also from my garden. it was amazing. I will definitely make them again.
Make that “a tea towel that you don’t mind getting stained orange (carrots…)
We got some kohlrabi from our local farm last week and weren’t sure what to do with them besides sauté them with other veggies. I googled kohlrabi recipes and found this one and am so glad I did! We added leeks, parsley and some more more spices, and they were fabulous – thanks so much for the recipe!
My Oma used to always make kohlrabi diced with carrots, presumably steamed, with a cheese sauce. Very simple. Basically the best.
Jackie I am going to try cooking it this way. I LOVED the combination of kohlrabi with carrots — and they did taste great as fritters, but… I kinda want to NOT fry any food right now. So your suggestion appeals to me greatly. Thank you for sharing this option.
These fritters look wonderful. I’ve got kohlrabi on my shopping list this week and can’t wait to pick some up at the green grocers. I shared it with peeps today as Recipe of the Day on a Facebook page I curate called Cooking with Whole Grains & Whole Foods.
I love the idea of this recipe! But since it just says “1 kohlrabi” without an approximate measurement by weight or volume, I’m having a hard time visualizing the proportions of kohlrabi to carrot. Using a small kohlrabi (roughly the size of a tennis ball) would make the mixture roughly equal parts kohlrabi to carrot, with the egg binding it well. Using a large kohlrabi (as big as a grapefruit) would make it mostly kohlrabi with bits of carrot mixed in, and a drier mixture since the egg would have to stretch farther. What have you found works best? Thanks :)
we had the hardest time getting them to stay together in the pan. Any tips?
Will HAVE to try this Recipe !! We call them “Nabos” and they are so Very Overlooked, even when we are Producers!!! Anyway, I might add some Roasted Sunflower Seeds or Peanuts just to add some Crunch to them !!!
Craig found this recipe on the web. We had it for Dinner tonight with Kale,beet and kohlrabi salad. What a delicious meal. We rate it a 10. Tasty ++++. Fritters and dressing were Devine.
I didn’t know what to do with the kohlrabi I got @ Farmer’s mkt,so I used a leaf put some mayo on it & put some sardines on the leaf & rolled it up! Now I am going to try the fritters with avocado sauce! Thanks for the recipe!
You know, you can eat the leaves too. Again, as said in the comments, a very popular vegetable in eastern and northern Europe.
These turned out great! I made the fritters on the smaller side because I had a bit of trouble getting them to hold together, and I got 9. It was a enough for dinner for 2 with a couple chicken sausages to round out the meal.
Wonderful! Thank you so much for letting us know! I will update for 8 fritters, since it’s a more round number :) So glad you liked them!
I need to use up some kohlrabi from my CSA and would like to try this recipe. About how many fritters does it make?
Good question! It does not appear that we recorded this at the time we developed the recipe. I would say eight? Would you be able to let us know how many you make?
Is it possible to bake it instead of frying it?
Hi! We chose frying for this recipe because we’ve found it to be easiest to keep fritters crispy and for them to stay together. You could certainly try a baked version, but we’re not sure how it would turn out! It may not have the same texture and may fall apart more easily.
Hallo from Canada, we moved here from Germany. Yes Kohlrabi is very common in Germany and now, here in Canada we make sure, it is growing in our back yard every year. We love it raw or as a side dish, just cut up, boiled in lightly salted water,when soft,drain the water and put a spoon of butter over it, Enjoy
This sounds awesome! After reading all of the positive comments about raw kohlrabi, though, I’m thinking about ‘deconstructing’ your recipe for an upcoming BBQ and doing a kohlrabi & carrot slaw with an avocado cream dressing!
Funny enough – I am living in Germany at the moment (I am from the US) and my first introduction to Kohlrabi was in Indiana! My grandfather’s family were all farmers in the Decatur area – they used to grow it in their gardens. It is indeed popular here in Germany. I’ve yet to find a recipe with cooked Kohlrabi that I like more than just eating it raw, so looking forward to trying yours!
Funny! I actually grew up in Decatur, but didn’t eat kohlrabi often :)
verdict: fritters are very tasty and a great idea for kohlrabi which is slightly past its prime. the avocado cream is a home run – now daydreaming other things to put it on…
Finally, Kohlrabi gets the recognition it deserves!! Having grown up in Germany, I know this vegetable very well and loved it as a kid and as an adult. Besides in soups, we made it either with a cream sauce or cut the kohlrabi into 1/4 inch slices, dipped them in milk and turned in flour. Then frying them in a frying pan. just take them out when they’re nice and golden. They are still a bit crispy and need to be cut with a knife but delicious, or what!! It goes with all kinds of meats and can be made either savory or just with a sprinkle of salt and pepper.
The only thing is the price! I wished they would be a little cheaper!
This turned out so good! My FIL brought Kohlrabi for us to try and I’ve been experimenting with it ever since. Thanks for the new recipe! This was delicious!
Just made this and it was wonderful! Thank You for the great recipe!
I made this for dinner tonight- it’s great. I agree, there are not enough recipes for kohlrabi. I’m bored eating them raw in a salad, thanks for the recipe!
Wow this was delicious! Thanks for creating and sharing the recipe. I wasn’t quite sure what to do with this unique vegetable, but I will certainly make this again when I find a kohlrabi in my hands.
Hi ..inmy country india we make dry preparatipn y with this vegetable nd we eat this with flatbread like indian royi
I love fritters, am definitely going to try these.
Fritters in general don’t usually do well in leftover form, but any idea if the batter keeps well? I pretty much am only cooking for myself, and three pick-ups into my first-time CSA membership, one of the big challenges I’m finding in using all this gorgeous produce (today including one purple and one white kohlrabi bulb) is not being limited to soups, stews and salads, but also not having to cook from scratch every night. Fritters, gratins and the like are tricky to pare down for one person, so a batter that will keep over a couple of days would be a godsend.
Hi! Thanks for the comment — unfortunately I have no idea how well the batter holds up in the fridge. Let us know if you try it!
I’m up to the test! I have committed to making them for a friend on Sunday, so I am going to reserve some of the batter in the fridge and see what happens 24 and 48 hours later. If it goes badly, I’ll feel sorry to waste some kohlrabi, but either way, very useful knowledge…
Sounds tasty! I eat it raw, too, but last fall I had a few extras and decided to add them to a chunky vegetable soup, just diced. It turned out to be delicious!
We’ll have to try that!
I found this recipe on Pinterest while trying to figure out how to use the kolhrabi we received in our CSA basket. These were delicious, and the avocado sauce was the perfect complement. We’ll definitely be making these again!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Hey guys,
Kohlrabi was in my weekly organic veggie box delivery this week. I had no idea what to do with it. Your recipe provided much inspiration. The fritters were a great idea!
Thanks,
Lana
So many people have never heard of them, but I grew up on kohlrabi. My mom was of Hungarian descent, & she would cream them or slice them up raw. Good sliced in chicken soup also.
These look yummy, I’ll definitely try them!
I was introduced to kohlrabi when I lived briefly in Switzerland with a very nice couple named Franz and Josie. Josie would peel and slice the kohlrabi, then simmer them in butter. It’s delicious! I like to let mine get a little caramelized.
What a fun story, Kim! And simmering in butter sounds like a wonderful idea. We’ll have to try that next!
Another comment from Europe ;-)
In Germany it’s the same like in Austria: Kohlrabi (it’s the same name in German) is very popular! There are tons of kohlrabi recipes, but the most popular way is to eat it raw with a dip (German “Quark” or sour cream with fresh herbs).
I really like the fritters idea!
Best wishes from Cologne,
Maja
Thank you for saying hello! So glad to hear from Germany, and know kohlrabi is a popular veg there as well. I had never heard of quark, but it sounds delicious! Thanks for writing!
It amazes me how kohlrabi strikes you as odd. Here, in Austria, it’s something really really common. But it must be like sweet potatoe are to us. I, for one, simply can’t get used to its taste. We mostly eat kohlrabi in vegetable soups or as a side dish called “Rahmkohlrabi” (kohlrabi in cream) – it’s delicious. i find your recipe pretty innovativ (kohlrabi and AVOCADO!!) though and will definitely try it to get a completely new kohlrabi experience ;)
Regards from Vienna.
Thank you for letting us know about kohlrabi in other parts of the world! It is fun to know it is much more common — and I love the idea of rahmkohlrabi! One of my dearest friends lives in your city — I will have to ask her whether she has tried it :) Thanks for saying hello!
Looks great! We definitely have to try…
Greetings from Spain :)
Thanks, Jorge & Carmen! Spain is one of our very favorite countries — thanks for saying hello! Greetings from the US (and we hope to visit your country again someday in the future!).
I love to chunk kohlrabi and roast or grill it- looking forward to trying your treatment of this too often overlooked veg.
I must say I’ve never heard of roasted kohlrabi — but I’m intrigued about how that might taste! Thanks for the idea!
It is delicious roasted!!
How very brave and inventive! A kolhrabi latke! I will have to give it a try. I have avoided this veggie as well.
This is so creative! I always shave kohlrabi really thin and treat it like a slaw or cut it up and braise it like baby turnips. This recipe sounds so much better, especially with that brilliant avocado cream. High fives to new vegetables and adventures in the kitchen! :)
Braising is an interesting idea — we’ll have to look into that! Thanks, Laura :)
I’ve been good friends with kohlrabi for many years:-) I love its taste and the best thing you can do is eat it raw without combining it with anything else. Not to speak of how healthy it is. Thanks for the great recipe. If you want to combine kohlrabi with another vegetable, carrot simply is the best choice.
I agree – raw kohlrabi is wonderful! I must admit this fritter doesn’t keep much of the lovely raw taste — but it still is delicious! My favorite is raw too, though :)
What a unique recipe! I love the look of this!
You are making me feel brave to finally buy this vegetable!! These look absolutely delicious. I can also completely relate to the side note. :)
Haha! Just a few years ago, we didn’t have much idea what kohlrabi (or fritters) were, let alone the knowledge to do anything in the kitchen! Thankfully now we can actually feed ourselves :)